Friday, March 16, 2012
Dear Prayer Partners,
Ah! Freedom!
This week, we found out that the Chinese teachers don’t
even use all of their pages in the book, so we are not expected to use all the
pages in the book, though it is nice to do as many as possible. It is so nice
to have the freedom to cater the classes to the specific needs of the children.
Watching the other teachers and interacting with the kids
at break time, I noticed their English is sporadic, at best. Several of them
didn’t know their colors or their numbers. At first, I felt very pressured to
teach this group my assigned classes- Weather and Seasons. However, after a
little bit, okay, a LOT of prayer, God showed me it didn’t have to be as hard
as I was making it. (I love God’s lesson plans. They’re always the best!)
I concentrated one class on colors, with a powerpoint, a
fishing game, and a color-by-number. The boys especially loved catching the
fish, and it’s definitely a plus to get them involved. Another class I
concentrated on weather; hot, cold, sunny, cloudy, rainy, windy, etc. At the end, I added the seasons, so they
could fill out their book, but I decided it was better to teach them little
stuff that they would remember than for them to understand everything in the
book. The last class, I covered feelings. Usually, when we ask a class, “How
are you?” they will answer, “I am fine, thank you, and you?” However, this class gave me blank looks.
Okay, so back to square one. -Lots of
stickman faces. (Believe me, my art is better from behind a camera.) The kids
followed though, and with a little help, did well with the review game.
At break time, I tried to teach the children how to play
Jacks. Jacks is not a Taiwanese game and is a totally new concept to them. It
is well worth getting over the translation barrier to watch them play. Awkward
moments, crazy balls, and lots of laughs make it a very enjoyable and memorable
time. Later, as I worked on my computer through one of the breaks, I saw a
child “sneak” around the corner to grab the jacks and practice. How fun to
watch them practice character in something so simple as a game of coordination
and strategy!
This class was especially homesick. Several evenings the
girls’ dorm would be full of crying girls wanting to go home, and one of them
actually did. Therefore, it was quite a surprise on Friday to see some tears.
Yes, most of them were excited to go home, but a few of them were very sad,
looking for all the teachers to say goodbye and receive hugs. Children are so
precious, and it is an honor to be a part of their lives for five days.
Thank you all for your prayers for my health. God has
blessed us with a few answers, and we are looking forward to all He will do.
Through it all, He is being glorified. The teachers see Him, and His strength
and peace lived out. Praise the Lord! May He continue to draw people and glory
to Himself.
To God all praise and glory!
Barbara J. Sutton
Comments